Dealing With the Consequences
by FranziT
Summary: Ginny stays at Grimmauld Place. The only other person there, Sirius Black, is her secret love, and she doesn't know how to deal with her feelings. A night full of passion changes their lives forever and leaves them with consequences to deal with.
1. First Steps

**Rating: **PG-13

**Summary:**Ginny stays at Grimmauld Place. The only other person there, Sirius Black, is her secret love, and she doesn't know how to deal with her feelings. A night full of passion together makes their lives a complete chaos. GW/SB

**Discaimer: **I own nothing but the plot.

**A/N:**I'm from Sweden and this is my first attempt to write a fanfic. There might be some minor grammar- and spelling mistakes, but hopefully nothing big. Read and enjoy! And oh, before I forget it; feel free to **_review_**!

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Ginny frowned as she lay there in her bed with her eyes fixed on the ceiling. She was aware of the fact that he stood there, outside her door, waiting for her to ask him in, and although he had not said a word she knew that it was _him_.

"Who's there?" she whispered.

No response came. She got slightly annoyed as he didn't answer, but she did not move. She just waited there, waited for him to go away, to leave her alone longing for him. Secretly.

"Who's there!" she said, now loud and clear so that he would have to hear her.

Nothing. No knock on the door, no footsteps telling her that he had left. Just silence. She sighed and got up from the bed, leaving it in a horrible disorder. Slowly she walked towards the closed bedroom door, her heart beating hard in her chest. She stopped in front of the door, swallowing down the big lump in her throat and putting a hand on the doorknob. While pushing it down she noticed once again that she heard no sound whatsoever from outside, but despite the fact that her hand was shaking, she gently opened the door. First when she had opened it completely she noticed that no one was there. Her eyes searched the empty hallway for something, something that would show her that he had been there after all. But why would he be there? Why would he want to talk to her? To him, she was nothing... just the youngest Weasley, neither more nor less.

She snorted and closed the door behind her. Why on earth had her parents left her here all alone? At least she could have stayed at the Burrow. And why couldn't she have joined Harry, Hermione, and Ron on their 'top-secret mission'?

He did not want her here. Obviously. She was just another burden on his already full packed shoulders. Every night he walked back and forth in the kitchen downstairs and got himself drunk, and she could feel his every move, the thoughts rushing through his head, his concern for Harry and the other members of the Order, and she felt so helpless. She wanted to comfort him, hold him and talk to him.

Sometimes at breakfast when they sat there by the kitchen table, silently having their meal, she met his eyes and for a brief second she got lost in them, drowning, without any hope for aid. Then he would just turn his eyes away, leaving her longing for him. At times though, she could see something in his eyes, somewhere beyond the pain and grief. Something that gave her a ray of hope, that made her wonder if maybe he felt something else for her than just responsibility. But then again, why would he? He was older than her, twenty-one years older before he fell through the veil, but Ginny could not suppress her feelings for him, which were much deeper than anything she had ever felt for any man before.

It was the third night alone at Grimmauld Place with him, and she felt an urgent need to do something. She could not just sit there waiting impatiently for the other members of the Order to come home. She opened the door again and silently made her way through the long hallway, halting in front of the stairs to calm down her nervous heartbeat, then continuing down the stairs heading for the kitchen where she knew she would find him.

He was sitting at the table, a nearly empty bottle of Firewhisky in front of him, his head resting in his hands, massaging his temples, trying to alleviate the pain coursing through his head, down his back, causing him to moan every so often. When he heard a creak from behind him he turned around slowly to see what had caused the noise.

"Oh, it's just you," he said, sounding terribly tired and tense.

"Are you feeling alright, Sirius? You look really tired. Maybe you should try to get some sleep," said Ginny, more calmly than she actually felt.

"What? No, no, I'm fine. Just a little worried, that's all," he mumbled, continuing to massage his forehead.

"Let me do that," Ginny said, taking a step towards him, then putting her hands gently on his head, rubbing his temples.

He first stiffened under her touch, looking at her in an odd way, but by and by he relaxed under her fingers, and every now and then he let out a sigh of pleasure. Ginny leaned forward a bit, taking in everything of him, every impression, every little detail; his smell, the nuances of his dark hair, and she could not get enough of him. After a while she took a step back, then walked to one of the kitchen cabinets, opened it and then turned around to him again.

"D'you want something to drink?" she said, smiling at him.

"Why not," he mumbled, glancing at the bottle next to him.

She had quickly taken out two glasses from the cabinet and now started filling one of them with the remaining Firewhisky. Her hair shimmered in the light of the lamp as she went over to the kitchen sink where she filled the other glass with pure water. She put the glass with water in front of Sirius and took place on the other side of the table, crossing her legs in an elegant movement. Her cheeks had gotten rosy and she looked down at her glass, the one containing Firewhisky, finally deciding to drink its content in one sweep.

Sirius stared at his glass for a while, not saying a word, then arose to pour out the water and replace it with something stronger.

"You should take it easy, Sirius," said Ginny mildly. "I think you've had enough."

"Don't tell me what to do, Ginevra" he said a bit harshly.

She stood up and crossed the room, stopping in front of him and pointing at the bottle of Firewhiskey on the table.

"No, I wouldn't tell you what to do if I couldn't smell your breath from the other side of the table, Sirius. And to me, that means that you've had enough," she said, taking the glass out of his hand.

When their fingers touched she flinched back and blushed. The scarred skin of his hand had had an incredible effect on her, almost like a shock. She looked up and met his gaze, not aware of the emotions playing in her eyes. She could feel his heavy breath on her face and her heart pounding hard in her chest.

"I... er... I think that we shall get you upstairs now," said Ginny hesitantly.

He looked at her with a smile playing around his lips as she moved closer to him, gently shoving him towards the stairs. One hand lay on his arm; the other one opened the door to his bedroom. She led him to the bed, bending down to untie his shoelaces, like he were a child.

"I think you can do the rest on your own," she pointed out, making him smirk at her cunningly as she straightened up again.

"So you don't want to help me undress myself then?" he said slurring.

Ginny let out a nervous laugh. The air in the room was heavy and she could feel the tension between the two of them.

"No... er... I think we shall call it a night, Sirius," she said, taking a few steps towards him.

Halting some inches in front of him, she got to her toes and kissed him on the cheek. The last thing she saw before she left the bedroom was his dark eyes, not looking at her as coolly as they used to anymore.


	2. Passion

Ginny increased her speed until she got to her bedroom and safely could lock the door behind her. She had absolutely no idea why she had kissed Sirius, but it had just seemed right at that time. She shook her head and smiled. Moving to her bed she slowly took her clothes off and jumped into her nightgown made out of a white, almost transparent fabric, barely covering the curves of her body.

She took place in front of the mirror, becoming aware of the changes her body had gone through since her graduation from Hogwarts almost two years ago. Her red hair was softly falling down over her shoulders, shimmering in different nuances when touched by light, and her eyes glimmered in an intense brown, turning darker, almost black, every time she got upset or felt desire. She was an attractive young woman, sometimes seemingly innocent, almost childish, but despite that she had more experience than anyone would assume. Of course, no one knew. Not even Hermione, who after all had become her best friend after Ginny's graduation.

She started gently combing her hair while trying to suppress the vision of the man laying in bed just a couple of doors away. She knew that she'd never be able to fall asleep after the events of the evening, and the Firewhiskey had sharpened her senses in a strange way. She could still feel his scent and see his dark eyes glaring at her, and her skin burnt on the places where he had touched her.

She arose from the chair she'd been sitting in and made her way down to the kitchen to get herself a glass of warm milk or something else that would calm down her nerves. She entered the room in complete darkness, knowing that if she turned on the light she might wake Mrs Black up, and that she didn't want to risk.

She opened the cabinet, grabbed her favourite blue cup and filled it with milk. Deciding that she didn't want it warm, she started walking back towards the stairs lost in thought. When she bumped into something she gave out a little scream. Because of the darkness she couldn't see what, or who it was.

"Sirius, is that you?" she whispered, her hand clenching the cup.

"Whoa, don't sneak up on me like that, Gin!" she heard a familiar voice slur.

She breathed out and punched him playfully in the stomach. She heard him let out a small moan in surprise and the corners of her mouth twitched upwards.

No one could see where the other one was standing since it was pitch-black, so Ginny stretched out her arm to feel where he was. As her fingers gently stroke his chest she trembled but didn't pull her hand back.

"There you are," said Ginny, her voice a bit unsteady.

She felt him taking a step towards her and she instinctively pulled backwards, her eyes starting to adjust to the darkness. She heard him stop right in front of her, his eyes glaring at her like a fox about to snatch its prey. She shivered and looked the other way, deliberately avoiding his stare.

"What are you doing down here, Sirius? I thought I told you to go to bed," she mumbled.

"I know, but I can't fall asleep in this empty house. I haven't been able to do that since... well, since everybody left." She noticed that he didn't sound completely honest.

"But I didn't want to tell you. You were so keen on getting me into bed that I didn't want to disappoint you," he said sounding quite amused, his breath making her wrinkle her nose. He still smelled like alcohol.

Ginny blushed and was, for the first time, happy that they were standing there in almost complete darkness, although she would have preferred to have him in an unreachable distance instead of just a couple of inches away.

"Well, it's your choice," said Ginny, "I just thought that a good night's sleep would do you good."

"Oh, why is that?" Sirius asked. 

"You said you had troubles sleeping, didn't you?"

"Yes?"

"So, I just thought that maybe consuming a fair amount of alcohol would make it easier for you to go to bed and sleep." 

"Sleep?" Sirius asked, giving her a meaningful look.

"Yes, to sleep." Ginny felt herself blushing, grateful yet again for the cover of the darkness.

"That was very thoughtful of you, Ginevra, but I must say that it was a bit naïve too. I've already tried the famous drowning-myself-in-alcohol technique before, several times in fact, but without any further success. But it was a good idea though, getting me drunk so I would voluntarily go to bed," said Sirius in a teasing tone, his voice challenging her into an argument which she gladly accepted.

"My dear Sirius, I would never try to get you drunk just to get you into bed," she said, purposely sounding equivocal, "but you've been so tense and moody these days that I wanted to help you," she said in and innocent tone.

"Stop playing my guardian angel. I prefer you as the fiery red-head you use to be," he said with a grin.

"As a result of everyone's complaints about my rising temper, I try to keep the beast inside under control," said Ginny, her eyes fixing his in a silent battle of minds.

"I would really enjoy you letting that beast out for a change. This place is rather dull, especially when everybody's hiding their feelings, don't you think?"

He provoked her, and she couldn't help but blush again when she heard him speak his mind. She had promised herself that he would never find out what she truly felt for him, but it was hard to keep her mouth shut when he so openly challenged her.

"Sirius, I'm quite an open person and I used to share my thoughts and feelings with others, but since you have been so grumpy and never talk to me I really didn't feel like telling you about my thoughts and concerns. And I don't intend to do it now either 'cause it's actually quite late and I would like to get some sleep," Ginny said and pushed him away in an attempt to go upstairs.

He had grabbed her wrist and spun her around before she had taken two steps. Still holding her arm he took out his wand from a pocket and lit its tip with a quietly murmured '_Lumos_'.

"First of all, I prefer to look the person I'm talking to in the eyes and I also wish to give them an opportunity to respond when I've made my statement. Second of all..." he abruptly stopped talking as his eyes wandered down Ginny's body, noticing her nightgown and her long legs, barely covered by the transparent piece of clothing.

Ginny's stomach made a jolt as she saw how he eyed her and she shivered slightly as she remembered that he still hadn't let go of her wrist.

"What, Sirius? Is there something wrong?" she asked, trying to ignore his persistent stare.

She caught his eyes and read in them what he so desperately tried to hide. Desire. Anxiety. She knew he wanted her. She just hadn't realised how much. She raised her hand to his face and let one finger follow the contours of his left cheekbone, feeling a light tingle in her fingertip every time she touched one of his scars, down to his lower lip, and then up again to wipe a particularly persistent lock of hair away from his eyes. She knew that she was tempting fate, but she just couldn't get herself to stop.

Ginny felt his heart pounding hard as she once again put her hand on his chest. She could feel him take a deep breath and she unintentionally did the same.

Then he did something she hadn't expected. He grabbed the hand that she had been caressing his face with and started kissing the palm, sending shivers through her body, continuing out to the tip of her index finger, which he placed between his lips and gently sucked on. She moaned as he started placing light kisses on the sensitive skin of her wrist, and she could feel her skin burn where he had touched her just seconds ago. All of a sudden he stretched out to full-length, staring down at her glowing face.

His mouth was alarmingly close to hers and she willingly separated her lips. As he bent down she closed her eyes, thirsting for him to touch her. She felt how his lips stroked hers as light as a feather and she quivered, leaning closer against him to deepen the kiss. She folded her arms around his neck, letting her fingers play with his silky, thick hair and caress the delicate skin of his shoulders. His tongue fondled her lower lip and then slid into her mouth exploring its every angle, playing with her tongue in a dangerous game that made her feel quite giddy.

Her hands were rubbing his back gently, and she could feel how his tense muscles relaxed under her touch. Every now and then he let out a sigh of pleasure and she became bolder, letting her hands slip in under his shirt. He felt warm and full of life. But suddenly he stiffened and took a step backwards. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at her breathlessly.

"Ginny, we have to stop. If we go on I..." Sirius started saying, but Ginny raised a hand in objection and he stopped talking.

"Sirius, I know what I'm doing."

"But..."

She got to her toes and kissed him with all the passion she had to give, and to her delight he kissed her back, first a bit hesitantly, but then more and more aggressive, holding her tight in his arms. He broke the kiss and put one hand around her knee bends, the other hand around her back, and lifted her up like if she weighed nothing. She rested her head in the hollow between his collar bone and chin, and closed her eyes while he carried her up the stairs, down the corridor, and into his bedroom where he gently put her down onto his bed.

Sirius stood there for a couple of seconds and the sight made him shiver. Ginny's lips were red and swollen, her eyes almost black, and her hair fell down over her shoulders in a jumble.

She reached out for him and pulled him down so that he came to rest on top of her, then started to kiss his neck and wandered up to nibble at his earlobe. He moaned and began to roll off of her but Ginny quickly moved her body so she ended up sitting on top of him. He looked at her, clearly suppressing his emotions.

"Ginevra, are you completely sure you want to do this?" he asked in a serious tone.

"Never been more certain about anything before," said Ginny, leaning over and once again kissing him softly on the mouth.

They explored each other on every level that night, yearning for the others touch, whispering gentle words, quenching the thirst for intimacy, and finally falling asleep in each others arms.


	3. Confessions

Ginny woke up the following morning feeling warm, pleasant and relaxed. And with a headache that made her feel like her head was going to explode. As she opened her eyes she was startled because she couldn't remember where she was. Then she turned her head to the right and when she saw a couple of dark eyes fixed on her she remembered and blushed slightly. She heard his deep chuckle and her face turned a darker shade of red.

"Why are you blushing, Gin? I don't recall you being particularly prudish last night," he said in a teasing tone, a big grin brightening up his face.

"Oh, shut your mouth, Sirius. That Firewhisky didn't do me any good I tell you. My head's throbbing like hell and I wake up lying in bed next to you. This must be the worst morning ever," said Ginny dejectedly, but her eyes sparkled with laughter.

"You don't regret it, do you?" he said, trying to hide his apprehension.

"No, I don't. I told you last night, and I'll tell you again if you wish, but I thought I made it perfectly clear that I've never been so sure about anything in my life before. And you weren't _that_ bad," Ginny said, starting to giggle as she saw the expression on his face.

"Oi, Gin, be careful. I could be tempted to prove my skills," he said, smiling widely, one of his hands starting to stroke the curve of her back.

"I don't mind," she whispered, leaning in to kiss him softly on his neck.

"You asked for it."

They didn't leave the room until late that afternoon. Ginny was searching through the cabinets in the kitchen trying to find something edible. Her arms full of Pumpkin Pasties, Chocolate Frogs and some apples and pears she entered the living room where Sirius was sitting in a comfortable armchair in front of the crackling fire, waiting for her. She put down the food on a nearby table and sat down at Sirius' feet. Ginny leaned her head against his knee, and his hand automatically started caressing her hair.

"I've never considered this old house my home. It's always made me feel unpleasant somehow, but now... Although it is still Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, something's changed. It's not as cold and uninviting as it used to be anymore. Instead it's warm and friendly. Well, maybe the whole house isn't, but at least the kitchen has improved and so has this room. And of course my bedroom," chuckled Sirius.

"Very funny. Although I have to admit that you're right. It's not that bad any longer, spending time in this old ruin, but I hated it at first," she stated while changing her position to a more comfortable one.

"The first summer I spent here was horrible. All I did was clean out wardrobes and throw away your old inherited belongings, and on top of everything I wasn't allowed to take part in the Order's meetings. I understand now why you didn't let under-aged wizards and witches attend to the meetings, but I was only a child so you can understand how frustrating it was not to know what was going on. Well, actually, you should understand it better than most people. It makes you feel so useless if you can't help with anything meaningful, and that made me hate this house. I felt like it was my prison, not as much as it must have been yours, but still, I felt locked up. And then when you fell through that veil..." she stopped for a second and rubbed her eyes, feeling them prickle with tears, "I hated this house more than ever. No one wanted to come here for everything reminded us of you. Still we had to keep on going, and it hurt so much to look into Harry's eyes when we came here, for they were full of pain and sorrow. And when you got back, after the Final War, after Voldemort's defeat..."

Ginny couldn't stop the stream of tears from falling down her cheeks and she started crying silently while Sirius lifted her up and put her on his lap. She still had nightmares about that night. So many had lost their lives, and she could still see them in her dreams, their eyes full of fear and grief. Sirius was rocking her and holding her tightly in his arms, not saying anything. He wished he could take her pain and make it go away, make every bad thing that had happened to her undone, but he couldn't. He hadn't been there, hadn't done anything to help them against the Dark Lord, and now the guilt washed over him.

He didn't know how or why he had been able to step out from behind the veil and he couldn't remember anything about the time that he had spent there. But one day he had pushed the heavy curtain aside and stepped out into the room in the Department of Mysteries, where he once had fought against Bellatrix Lestrange and the other Death Eaters. Five years of his life had passed by without him aging a day, so to him it felt like he had just fallen into the veil.

The following days after his return were kind of blurry and he didn't remember much of them. He had a vague memory of someone visiting him every now and then, probably Harry, and he had also felt the presence of someone else in the room, someone who had watched over him day and night. Then he had started to recover faster, and his adjustment to this new world, a world without the threat of Voldemort's return hanging over them, had begun.

It had been hard to start all over, for he didn't know what had happened the last five years, but with patience he soon found out all the important things. Hermione and Ron had gotten married just before the Final War broke out, but when Bellatrix had hit Hermione with a shouted '_Crucio_' in the stomach, Hermione had fell so hard onto the ground that she'd lost her unborn baby. Harry, who had watched his best friends suffer unspeakable pain caused by the loss of their child, killed Bellatrix two weeks later. Charlie Weasley, Tonks, Moody, Kingsley, McGonagall, Moony, and Dumbledore had died while defending the walls of Hogwarts where the battle had took place. Harry had defeated Voldemort with Dumbledore's help, who in the end had to sacrifice himself so that Harry could live. And he, Sirius, had stepped out from behind the veil just the very second Voldemort had died.

"Sirius, what are you thinking about?" he heard Ginny say.

"Was it you?" he asked quietly.

"What?"

"Were you watching over me the days after I got back? Were you the one not leaving my side until my condition improved?" said Sirius, his eyes fixed on the fireplace.

Ginny didn't answer immediately. She just looked at him with an odd expression, hiding her emotions behind a mask.

"Yes, I was there. All the others were busy, and I didn't want to leave you alone 'cause your condition was quite critical," she whispered, "I mean, you could have died..."

"Well, I didn't," he interrupted her as he saw the tears glitter in her eyes again, "but thank you for not leaving me alone," he murmured and kissed the wet traces the tears had left on her cheek.

She snuggled up to him and placed her head on his chest, falling asleep to the sound of the crackling fire and his regular breaths.


	4. Leaving

Her neck ached as she woke up and noticed that she was no longer sitting in the armchair in the living room, but was lying down in Sirius' bed, covered with a big blue quilt. The room was silent and dark and it made Ginny feel a bit uncomfortable, so she got out of the bed, jumped into her slippers and made her way to the door.

The lights in the kitchen were turned on and she could hear voices from inside the room. When she opened the door the light dazzled her, but as her eyes got used to the brightness of the room she saw Sirius sitting at the table together with Harry, Ron and Hermione.

Hermione let out a shriek and jumped to her feet, nearly knocking Ginny to the floor when she gave her a big hug. Although surprised by the sight of the three of them, Ginny grinned and returned Hermione's hug. She then softly removed herself from her grasp and went over to greet Ron and Harry. After giving them both a kiss she took a seat next to Sirius and eyed the people in front of her.

"Bloody hell, you all look like you've been starving for days. Pale and unhealthy, all three of you. Didn't you get anything to eat?" she remarked and rose to walk over to the sink where she started making them some sandwiches. She was unaware of the fact that she had just sounded like Molly Weasley, but the others had noticed and now exchanged amused looks.

"We didn't really have time to eat, Gin," said Ron after a while, sounding a bit like Percy. "I mean, we had other, more important, things to do."

"Oh, and do any of you care to tell me about these 'important' things?"

"Sorry, Gin, can't do that. Strictly confidential," Hermione said, looking a bit shamefaced.

"Didn't think so either," mumbled Ginny, while feeling her temper rise for a moment.

She ogled at Sirius from the corner of her eye and suddenly felt childish. He had wrinkled his forehead, an inscrutable expression shadowing his eyes. She immediately tried to sooth her anger, not wanting him to notice her sudden change of mood.

She placed the sandwiches she had fixed on the table and sat down next to Sirius again. Although he hadn't said anything since she had entered the kitchen, she could tell that something was wrong.

"Are you alright, Sirius?" asked Ginny, and put a comforting hand on his arm.

As he stiffened under her touch, she quickly pulled her hand away and looked at him worriedly, her eyes full of unspoken questions.

"Yes, I'm fine," he muttered, sounding perfectly normal, but still Ginny couldn't get rid of the unpleasant feeling running down her spine, "But I think it's time for me to go upstairs and get some sleep," he added, rising and walking towards the kitchen door.

"Yes, you're probably right. I think I need some sleep as well," said Ginny, intending to rise as well.

"No, you have to stay here and talk with your friends. It would be rude to leave them here alone," he said, looking at the three people who until then had silently watched their discussion.

"Oh, don't you mind us. You two can go and get your sleep. We know where we can find beds in this house," said Hermione, eyeing the two of them curiously.

"Alright, thanks Hermione!" Ginny said and quickly followed Sirius, who already had climbed the stairs and was walking towards his bedroom.

As he was about to enter and lock the door behind himself, Ginny grabbed his wrist and forced him to turn around and look at her.

"Sirius, what the bloody hell's the matter with you? Why are you acting so strange?"

He removed her fingers from his arm and looked at her coolly, his face showing no expression whatsoever.

"I thought you'd be clever enough to understand that there would just be that one night, Ginevra. No feelings involved, no one getting hurt. Did you really think that we would continue this little game?" he said, his voice sounding firm and unyielding.

Ginny froze and her eyes widened in shock, as she understood what he was saying.

"What the bloody hell are you talking about? A game? Is that all it was to you? A bloody game? Didn't you feel anything at all last night?"

Ginny felt a great lump forming in her throat and she noticed herself sounding high-pitched and almost hysterical. Immediately she took a deep breath to calm down and regretted it at once as she felt the tears prickle in her eyes. Ginny heard him laugh. It sounded so unnatural, hard and cruel, not at all like the warm, hearty laugh that she knew so well.

"Oh, of course I felt something. And I'm quite sure you felt it too," she heard him say knowingly, and with every word he spoke, she felt more and more disgusted and hopeless. "But except for that, there was nothing. You're just a child, and you behave like one too. Besides, what did you expect? That I'd declare my love for you and we'd live happily ever after? Wake up Ginevra, this isn't a fairytale."

She looked at him, dumbstruck, feeling her heart shatter into little pieces and her nails cutting into the flesh of her palms. He was right. What had she expected? Although she felt like she was going to break down any minute she straightened up and looked at him, putting a mask of indifference on her face.

"I'm sorry for my childish behaviour, Mr Black, and I'm sorry if I gave you the impression of feeling more for you than I do. I never said that I wanted your love, and I didn't expect you to want mine either. But don't worry; I won't bother you ever again."

With that she spun around, leaving him standing on the doorstep. As he heard her door slam shut, he walked into his own room and locked the door. Ginny neither saw the painful expression in his eyes nor the single, bittersweet tear rolling down his cheek.

"I did it for you," he whispered tiredly.

The following days were like hell to Ginny. She avoided Sirius as much as possible, but every time their paths crossed, she felt her heart sting painfully and couldn't help the tears from forming in her eyes. It was hard to hide everything from Hermione, because she worried about Ginny and couldn't help but notice that something was bothering her friend. Ginny looked pale and didn't eat much. Her hair looked greasy and didn't have the same volume and shine as it used to have.

Three weeks passed by like this with Ginny walking around in a kind of trance. It was then she started to notice that something was wrong with her. Every morning she had to bend over the toilet seat and vomit, and she hadn't got her period either. Surely it could've been because she felt stressed and ate less then usual, but Ginny knew that that wasn't the case. She knew the symptoms of pregnancy quite well since she had seen them on Hermione, and she was almost positive that there was a child growing inside of her.

Telling Hermione about everything was the hardest thing she'd ever had to do, but when she was done explaining it was as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Ginny saw only one way out of this, and that was by leaving, because she desperately wanted to keep Sirius' child, and she knew that he didn't want it. He didn't want her, so she figured he wouldn't want a child with her either. If she told him though he'd probably ask her to marry him, out of responsibility, and that was something she wouldn't even consider doing. Never would she marry someone who didn't love her. Even if she loved him so much it hurt.

So now she was standing in her room, her bag packed, ready to leave Grimmauld Place. She had decided to go to Elgin, a town in the northwest of Scotland where one of her friends from school owned a little apartment. Nervously she walked up and down in the room, for she couldn't allow herself to make any mistakes. Hermione was the only one who knew about her leaving and she'd prefer to keep it that way.

At one o'clock she gathered her things and started walking down the stairs. Everybody in the house was fast asleep and she tried to be as quiet as possible. When she finally stepped out into the cold, fresh air, she took a deep breath and turned around to take a last look at the big, dark house. She cast a quick glance at the window where Sirius had his bedroom, and saw that the curtains had moved. But as no lights were turned on in the room she couldn't see if anyone was standing there or not.

With her trunk in one hand and her wand in the other, she moved with quick, determined steps down the street, not looking back.


	5. A New Acquaintance

Ginny sleepily opened her eyes sometime in the middle of the night, trying to figure out what had woke her up. The bed creaked under her weight as she got to her feet. She crossed the room and halted in front of the cradle sitting there. The soft noises coming from inside it seemed to get lost in the big, silent room, and Ginny couldn't help but think that they seemed quite misplaced.

She bent over and put her arms around the little person in the cradle that was supposed to be sleeping, then picked him up and gently started to rock him while humming a lullaby her mother always sang to her when she was small. It always made her heart ache, because she hadn't seen, nor talked, to anyone of her family members for almost two years. Three or four times had she spoken to Hermione, just to let everybody know that she was okay, but their last phone call had been more than six months ago.

Wandering through the room she noticed how cold it was. Empty and black, no sign of warmth or love at all. She hadn't put any effort in changing it, to make it more inviting, but now she almost felt sorry she hadn't. What a horrible place to let a child grow up in.

The baby snuggled closer into her arms and let out a murmuring sound. Ginny walked over to the bed, lying down onto it and placed her son next to herself. How he reminded her of Sirius. Although he had gotten her brown, sparkling eyes, his hair was pitch-black and his character almost identical to his father's. Stubborn and temperamental yet charming every time he laughed.

Ginny sighed and wrapped the blanket around her legs. She had begged Hermione never to tell anyone where she was, and so far Hermione seemed to have kept her promise. But somehow that wasn't as good as it had been in the beginning. Sometimes Ginny caught herself wishing for someone to knock on the door. She only left the flat when she bought food or other necessities, but never did she go out to meet other people or to make friends. Her whole life circled around her son, and she intended to keep it that way.

A sudden knock on the front door broke the silence. Ginny thoughtfully rose from the bed, pulled a thin dressing gown over her naked shoulders and started walking towards the outer door. She cursed herself for not having built in a peephole and hesitantly unlocked the chain and pushed down the door handle. At the sight of the person standing outside, her hands started to shake and her eyes widened in surprise.

'Hi, Gin,' a familiar, but at the same time unfamiliar, voice greeted her. 'May I come in?'

Ginny swallowed and nodded at the person on her doorstep, then quickly moved aside to let him in and shut the door. When she'd let go of the door handle she didn't really know where to put her hands, so she started to play with the silky fabric of her dressing gown as she watched the person walking around in her living room.

'Nice place you've got yourself, Gin' he said, not sounding convincing at all.

Ginny knew how awful her flat looked, how cold and unwelcoming. Similar to her bedroom there were no photos or other personal belongings lying around except for a little, red tractor with green stripes which had been thrown into a corner quite carelessly. It was her son's favourite plaything. She had bought it for Christmas last year in a Muggle shop and since then he had been playing with his 'twacto' every day.

"Listen, Harry, you came here for a reason," said Ginny, her voice trembling a bit. "I have better things to do than to engage in small talk with you in my living room in the middle of the night, so I'd welcome it if you hurried up a bit."

Just as Harry was about to answer, the door to the bedroom opened and a little boy came padding out, rubbing his eyes with tiny hands.

"Mummy?" he whispered, his eyes still shut against the dazzling light.

"I'm here, Jason," Ginny mumbled, walking over to the boy and lifting him up. "Now, Jay Jay, why aren't you in bed sleeping?" She gently stroked his hair and kissed him on the forehead.

"Bad dweam!" answered Jason, with a big yawn.

"Well, you don't have to be afraid, sweetie. Mummy will protect you with her magic and no one is ever going to hurt you." She smiled at him and pressed his little body against hers in a hug. Then she glanced over to where Harry was standing.

He was looking at the boy with an expression of surprise and recognition in his eyes. He ran a hand through his messy hair and looked rather bewildered as he attempted to say something, but somehow the words seemed to get stuck in his throat and he just let out an indistinct sound.

"Did you say something, Harry?" Ginny turned to face him, and as she saw how he looked at her son she blushed

"Oh, I'm sorry; I haven't introduced you to Jason yet," she mumbled. "Jason, I want you to meet one of Mummy's friends from England. This is Harry." She put Jason down and took hold of his hand.

"Harry, this is Jason, my son," she said, shoving the little boy towards Harry, who was standing awkwardly in the middle of the room.

They halted in front of him and Ginny took a step backwards so that Jason slowly could eye the older man. Harry cleared his throat and then knelt down to face the little boy. For a while they stood there sizing each other up, then Jason stumbled forward and gave Harry a quick hug before running back to his mother and hiding behind her leg. Harry let out a little laugh before rising again. Ginny noticed the questioning look in his eyes and sighed.

"Come on, Harry, just ask me," she said swiftly. "I know what you're thinking. He looks astonishingly like him, don't you think?"

"He does," said Harry, not pretending he hadn't understood. "When...?"

"A while before I left. It was just one night and, well..." she sighed again as she thought about the events two years earlier. "It feels like a million light-years away now, though. A bit unreal."

"As much as I'd like to hear this; I think we'll have to postpone it. I came here for a reason, Ginny. You won't like it, but I haven't travelled all this way for nothing. You're coming back home with me," said Harry swiftly, before shooting her a determined glance.


	6. Decisions

Ginny opened her mouth and gasped. She saw Harry blushing but the determination in his eyes was still there.

"Harry, have you taken your pills today? No, seriously, because I think you're going nuts," she said incredulously.

"I'm not kidding. You're coming home with me, whether you want to or not."

"This is ludicrous. Why should I? My life is perfect just as it is, so why bother making it complicated by digging up old wounds?" asked Ginny provokingly.

"I don't know how you define the word 'perfect', but if you mean the fact that your whole life is revolving around Jason and nothing but him, then you've got it right. Although I have to say that I find the way you're living at the moment rather pathetic," Harry said, now regaining his self-confidence.

Ginny felt her heart thumping wildly in her chest and she swallowed several times to get rid of the unpleasant memories creeping into her head.

"Just out of curiosity; why should I return with you? Is there any particular reason for bringing me back today?"

"In fact, there is," said Harry, "Hermione's and Ron's daughter is getting baptized and as her godmother you ought to be there," he continued, smirking at the shocked look on her face.

"They've got a daughter? But I can't just leave. I mean… Jason… the flat…" stuttered Ginny, trying to come up with a reasonable excuse.

"That's no problem. I've already fixed a new tenant for the flat who's coming here in two days' time. It was a bit hard though I have to admit. I'm not used to doing these Muggle things," Harry pointed out.

"But…" Ginny felt helpless and tried to say something, but the words got stuck in her throat.

Jason was tugging on her sleeve, looking at her with a curious expression.

"Whe we go, Mummy?" he asked curiously.

"We're going to visit grandma, grandpa and your aunties and uncles for a week or so. And you're going to meet Mummy's friends. And your…" She stopped herself before saying the word 'father'.

She'd never talked with Jason about Sirius and this wasn't the right time to do it either. Looking down at her son she was again reminded of the enormous similarities between him and the man she loved. Or had loved. She didn't really know right now. And she didn't want to think about it either.

"Okay, Harry, I'm coming with you. But on one condition; you have to let me leave whenever I want to," she stated resolutely.

"Not before the baptism is over," responded Harry quickly.

"Well, alright, then it's all set. Jay Jay, you and Mummy are going to England!" Ginny said, trying to hide the anticipation in her voice.

The bags were packed in a minute and when Ginny stepped out the door she didn't even look back. She wouldn't miss the place where she'd been living the last two years. Holding the sleeping boy in one arm, a suitcase in the other, she followed Harry down the street. They had been walking for five minutes or so when Harry suddenly stopped and took something out of his pocket. In his hand he held a sock that looked rather worn and smelled a bit strange.

"I came here with this Portkey so that we wouldn't have to go the whole way by train," Harry said, turning to Ginny with a smile.

"Oh, that's great. I didn't really feel like travelling through the whole of Great Britain in the middle of the night," said Ginny and let out a little laugh. "So this is it then."

She smiled at the little boy snoring quietly in her arms, and suddenly felt a wave of love floating over her. She kissed him and mumbled quietly, "We're going home, honey. We're finally going home."

A few seconds later, after feeling a tug behind her navel, Ginny was standing in the kitchen of the place that was her definition of the word home. She looked at the clock on the wall, and the hand pointing at her current position. She was home at last.

Her head spun around as the lights were turned on and Ginny stared straight into Ron's face. She hesitated but after handing Jason to Harry, she threw herself into Ron's arms. He hugged her back, holding her in a tight grip as to see if she really was there or if he was dreaming. Then he lifted her into the air and spun her around a couple of times before he gently put her down and started eyeing her.

"You've gained weight, my dear sister," he chuckled jokingly, and moved away to avoid the fist trying to punch his arm playfully.

"Nice to see you too, Ron. You're looking good," responded Ginny ironically, but she smiled widely at her brothers grimace.

"Well, yes, now that you're here I feel good too. It's been too long, Gin. We've missed you."

Ginny blushed and turned her face down, but Ron lifted her head up again and forced her to look into his eyes.

"You have some explaining to do, little sister, but first we'll have to get you into bed."

He glanced over to where Harry was standing and frowned slightly at the sight of Harry struggling desperately to hold the laughing boy in his arms the right way.

"His name's Jason, Ron. And yes, he's mine, and I love him. I know I have some explaining to do, but right now I'm too tired and I believe Jason would appreciate a nice, warm bed too, even though he seems to enjoy irritating Harry."

She went over to where Harry was still trying to keep Jason under control, but the boy calmed down when he felt his mother's arms around him. He yawned and leaned his head against her collarbone, falling asleep immediately.

"Okay, you can have your old room, Gin. There's room enough for both of you," Ron pointed out and took hold of Ginny's arm, pushing her up the stairs toward her old room.

Ginny was a bit flustered while walking through the house, but as soon as she saw her old room she felt herself relax. It looked exactly like she had left it, her old schoolbooks lying around on her desk, the curtains hanging perfectly around her window and a pile of clothing on the chair in the corner. The only thing different was her bed that was neatly made and a vase filled with lavender on her bedside table. Otherwise the room looked like she'd never left it.

Ginny wiped away a single tear rolling down her cheek and turned to her brother, who was eyeing her with a worried expression.

"Thank you, Ron."

"For what?"

"I don't know. Just… thank you! For everything," Ginny whispered and kissed her brother on the cheek.

Ron's ears reddened and he cleared his throat, visibly moved by her words.

"We'll talk more in the morning, Ginny. Don't disappear again. I've missed you," Ron said and turned, shutting the door behind him.

"I've missed you too," mumbled Ginny, before putting Jason down onto the bed.

She lay down next to him, closed her eyes and fell asleep with a feeling of comfort.


	7. Meetings

Birds were twittering as Ginny woke up. A ray of sunlight shone in through her window, making her hair shine in different colours and her eyes sparkle. The morning hadn't woken up the peaceful, snoring little boy though, who was wrapped in a red quilt next to her.

She rose from bed, carefully, and snuck out into the hallway on tiptoes. Suddenly a small shriek broke the silence, and Ginny soon found herself embraced by a strong pair of arms. Molly Weasley wouldn't let her daughter go for some time so Ginny hugged her mother back with all the love she could possibly give.

Tears of joy were making the eyes of the older female Weasley glisten as she took a step back and looked at her grown up daughter. Ginny had changed in the past two years. She wasn't a little skinny girl anymore, but had gotten a glimmer of experience and cynicism in her eyes that made her seem more mature.

"Let me look at you, dear," Molly exclaimed and made Ginny rotate twice. "You look absolutely adorable, sweetheart. But somewhat different."

Molly eyed Ginny for a few seconds. "You've been pregnant?" she finally said in a surprised but yet knowing way.

Since there was no reason to deny the facts, Ginny told her mother about Jason. As she had started talking the words just flowed out of her mouth and suddenly she found herself confessing everything about her relationship with Sirius and the reasons for her sudden departure. Molly listened to her patiently; not uttering a word while Ginny spoke and when she'd finished Molly looked at her with an undecipherable glint in her eyes.

"Mum?"

Ginny stared at her mother with a somewhat anxious expression and then put her hand on Molly's shoulder. To Ginny's relief, Molly smiled at her and squeezed her hand gently.

"I'm glad you told me, Ginevra, but why did you wait two whole years?"

"Well…"

"You have to understand how baffled we were when we came back and you weren't there. We felt guilty for your departure, like it was our fault. But we didn't know where you went, or if something had happened. The only guarantee we had of your well-being were Hermione's words, but she wouldn't tell us anything beyond the fact that you were okay."

The pain in Ginny's heart was unbearable. She relived the first months after her leaving, and every inch of her soul ached as she remembered how helpless and frustrated she'd felt. Molly continued speaking, but Ginny couldn't focus on her words. She was too busy holding the tears back, and when her mother finished Ginny looked at her pleadingly.

"Please forgive me, Mum. I never wanted to hurt you, nor anyone else for that matter, but I couldn't think of any other way out," she whispered, and when her body started shaking in silent sobs Molly put her arms around her and rocked her back and forth.

They stood there for a while, Ginny clinging to her mother and Molly holding her daughter tightly. A muffled noise broke the silence and Ginny wiped the tears off of her cheeks. Molly did so as well and Ginny cast her a quick glance.

"You want to meet my Jason?"

Her mother nodded and together they walked into the room where the little boy was fully awake, rolling around in the big bed, his eyes sparkling with laughter. As he spotted his grandmother his little arm promptly shot up into the air and reached for her. Molly laughed and took a seat next to him. He immediately crawled up onto her lap and looked at her with his big, brown, chestnut-coloured eyes.

"So this is little Mr Weasley? You certainly look a lot like Ginny when she was your age, but you've definitely got your impish smile from somebody else," Molly stated and tickled Jason's stomach gently.

"Mummy?" Jason looked at Ginny curiously, and Ginny smiled at him encouragingly.

"Jason, that is your grandmother, Molly Weasley; my Mummy!"

"Gwannie?" Jason looked a bit bewildered, but then clasped his arms around Molly's neck and kissed her on the cheek. "Gwannie, play?"

"Of course, dear. I'd love to play with you," Molly said, her eyes sparkling just like her grandson's.

Ginny smiled at the two of them and silently left the room, trying not to disturb the game that had just begun. She strolled through the house, breathing deeply, just to memorize the scent of her surroundings. The happiness she felt inside was odd, but not in any way unpleasant.

She chose to walk out to the garden, which to her surprise was empty. As long as she could remember, the garden had always been occupied by at least one of her brothers, and now it felt somewhat unfamiliar to see it in complete silence. Yet it wasn't completely silent, for when Ginny had taken a seat under one of the gnarled trees, she could hear a bird twitter nearby and something, probably a gnome, caused one of the bushes to move quietly. A soft breeze was playing with Ginny's hair, and the cold autumn air made her shiver.

She sat there for a while, solely enjoying the calm. Nostalgia hit her with a thud as she recalled all the happy things from her childhood. Thus far she'd never regretted any of her actions, but now she was questioning if she had made all the right decisions in her life. But then again, who could decide what's right and what's not, and were there really any wrong decisions?

Ginny jumped as she heard a twig behind her break. After turning her head to see who had joined her, all colour left her face and she felt sick and dizzy.

Sirius too, who hadn't seen her, was obviously startled and had to reach out to hold on to the tree trunk. Though he was the one of them who spoke first, she could hear his voice tremble and he sounded a bit insecure.

"Ginny… I didn't expect you here. When…"

"Just last night," she interrupted him and got to her feet, feeling a bit nauseous. "It's good to see you, Sirius. It's been a while."

"It has in deed," Sirius responded absently. "I suppose you've come back to participate in the baptism?"

"That's true. But I'm glad I got an opportunity to return without making a big stir of it. I had planned to come back sooner or later, so why not sooner?" she said, her voice sounding quite formal.

"Welcome back, then!" Sirius said a bit too cheerily. "How long are you planning to stay for?"

"I'll probably leave after the baptism. I might stay another day or so. I don't want to be a burden."

"Oh, I see…"

They both fell silent and stood there awkwardly for a minute or two. Then Sirius cleared his throat and attempted to say something, but he was interrupted yet again.

"Mummy! Wicked witch searching me!" a small voice shouted and Ginny felt her heart skip a beat at the sight of the little boy running towards them with a big grin on his face.


	8. Insights

Ginny laughed and bent down, starting to tickle Jason. The little boy giggled while his mother's hands moved fast over his stomach. Then Ginny knelt down and lifted Jason on to her lap. There she started kissing him with wet, smacking noises and the boy doubled up with laughter.

"Now, Jay Jay, tell me which wicked witch was chasing you?" said Ginny teasingly after a while.

"Gwannie!"

"Ah, I figured. Well, now, since you're here I'd like to introduce you to someone." Ginny cast a nervous glance at Sirius' face and found what she had expected. He was looking from Jason, to her, and then back again with recognition in his features, and Ginny realized with a slight quiver that she was facing a big argument.

She quickly got to her feet and pulled Jason up into her arms, "Jason, this is Sirius, one of..."

"Ginny, could I have a quick word with you before we continue this introduction?" Sirius interrupted her with suppressed anger in his voice.

"Well…"

"Now!" Sirius said in a tone that didn't tolerate any objections.

"Fine, let's take a walk through the garden." Ginny turned to Jason who was trying to get her attention "Jay Jay, I want you to go back to Granny and play with her for a while. I'll be back as soon as possible."

She put Jason down with a slight feeling of exposure, and the little boy tottered away towards the house. The mild breeze was making whirls in her hair, and the leaves from the trees were casting shadows over her features. The two of them started walking silently towards the end of the garden, side by side. After a while Sirius halted.

"So, that is your son," he said, more like a statement than a question.

"Yes."

"Just out of curiosity, how old is he?"

Ginny crossed her arms over her chest, a gesture showing her fear and insecurity. "He is fifteen months old now."

Sirius looked at her blankly; his lips pressed together forming a thin line and his eyes shooting lightning. Ginny shrugged and looked at him pleadingly.

"Please, Sirius, you have to understand…"

"Understand? Understand what?" Sirius exclaimed, throwing his hands up in a dejected gesture, his eyes sparkling furiously "That you kept this boy away from me for the first fifteen months of his life? Why you had to keep it a secret? That you refused me to see him, to even know about him, although he is so obviously my son? No, I don't understand. I don't understand any of it at all."

"Now you listen carefully," Ginny hissed in a sharp voice, "You had no right whatsoever to be a part of Jason's life. You practically threw me out of the house."

Sirius attempted to object but Ginny continued, raising her voice even more, "No, you didn't usher me out the house, nor did you literally tell me to go, but I'm not stupid, Sirius. I know when one isn't wanted, and I certainly wasn't."

"Still, you had no right to keep it a secret, Ginevra!" Sirius burst out in frustration. "He's my child as much as he's yours. I never would have let you leave if I knew what circumstances you were in."

"I know that, and that's why I left. Can't you see, Sirius? Don't you understand?"

"No, I really don't. That was totally irresponsible of you**…** leaving like that!"

"Stop treating me like a child, Sirius. I grew up a long time ago, in case you haven't noticed."

"Well, then tell me why you acted like a child all along, and not like an adult, ready to admit your faults and take on your responsibilities?" snapped Sirius, making Ginny boil with anger.

"You don't know anything, Mr Black. I might be the one acting like a child, but at least I'm not blind. Not like you, just walking around, not noticing anybody's feelings or concerns. No**…** I much rather prefer being the child you accuse me of being." With that she spun around and started to walk back towards the house.

She wasn't surprised to feel Sirius' hand on her wrist, forcing her to turn and face him, nor was she surprised by the enraged look on his face. But when she felt his demanding lips upon hers, she was taken aback by the cruelty he kissed her with. No tenderness lay in the kiss, just pure frustration and anger. But Ginny impulsively responded to the touch and pressed her body tightly against his. Sirius' hands were moving up and down her back, leaving burning traces on her skin. She knew in the back of her mind that she shouldn't let this happen, but her body betrayed her mind, and her senses were going wild.

When he suddenly pushed her away she stumbled backwards a few steps and had to grab hold of a tree trunk nearby, otherwise she would have fallen onto the ground. Sirius eyed her provokingly for a few second or so, and then started walking the same way Ginny had headed right before the short kiss. After passing her, he slowly turned to her with an expression of indifference on his face.

"Oh, and by the way, Ginevra, you're definitely not a child. Not a child at all." With that he left her standing there, perplexed and shivering in the cold air.

She still longed for him**…** every night before falling asleep. She felt him**…** his body, his wet kisses and the way their bodies had moved together perfectly. And every night for the last two years he had haunted her dreams, and she had so desperately wished for it to go away. But it wouldn't. It would never stop.

A few minutes later she returned to the house and walked straight to the kitchen. There, she found Harry with Jason on his lap, and Molly standing in front of the stove. Ginny smiled, because the picture of her mother standing at that same place was so familiar to her. Harry was trying to remove his glasses from Jason's grasp without any further success. Ginny let out a little laugh at the picture of the two of them, and they both turned their heads to her.

Jason quickly jumped out of Harry's lap and let go of the glasses so that they nearly fell to the ground. But Harry's reflexes were extremely good because of all the years of playing Quidditch, so he caught them right before hitting the floor.

"Mm, it smells delicious, Mum. What are we having?" Ginny's hand glided over Jason's head in a caressing movement.

"I'm making us some soup, dear. I hope Jason likes it too."

"Oh, of course he will. He's not particularly fastidious," answered Ginny with a smile.

"Good."

Ginny sat down in front of Harry and they started talking about this and that. He told her about everything he had done for the last two years and what everyone else had been up to. He was quite excited about the baptism because Ron and Hermione had made him their daughter's godfather. Ginny congratulated him and said that she was a bit nervous about the whole thing but also looked forward to it.

"I just remembered something**…** I don't even know what her name is!" Ginny exclaimed suddenly.

"You can ask Ron later, I'm sure he'd be happy to tell you all about his daughter. He's probably the proudest dad I've ever seen. Both he and Hermione make wonderful parents."

"Yes, I can imagine." Ginny looked down at Jason, a sad expression on her face. She let out a sigh and kissed her son on the head.

"Are you okay, Gin?" Harry asked worriedly.

"I'm fine. Just fine…"

Molly turned to look at her daughter questioningly, and Ginny smiled to cover up her mixed emotions.

"You know, Ginny, if there's something bothering you, please don't be afraid to tell us. We're your family We can help you," Molly said as she turned back to the food.

"I know, Mum. It's just that… this is something I have to figure out on my own."

With that she arose and gave her mother a quick kiss, then walked back to her room with Jason in her arms.


	9. A Change of Heart

Later that day, Ginny was standing in her room getting dressed for dinner. Jason was jumping up and down on the bed looking at his mother admiringly.

"Mummy looks nice," he said and jumped even higher on the creaking bed.

Ginny smiled at her little boy and thought about how gifted he was. He already talked understandably at the age of fifteen months, when most children just let out indistinct syllables. She looked proudly into Jason's eyes, and was yet again taken aback by how remarkably similar they were to hers.

"Come now, Jay Jay, we have to go downstairs. Everyone is awaiting us." She caught the little boy jumping straight into her arms, and after a quick glance into the mirror they headed for the kitchen.

When Ginny pushed the door open a wave of delicious scents hit her in the face. She stepped through the door and immediately the lively discussions about this and that halted.

"Ginny, where have you…"

"…been hiding?"

Fred and George rushed towards their little sister and stopped in front of her with big grins on their faces. She leaned in and gave them both a kiss, feeling a bit irritated for not being able to hug them; Jason was in her arms, struggling to get down. He had spotted Harry and was eager to get a hold of his glasses.

"And who is this little fellow?" Fred reached out a hand to Jason who eyed his hand suspiciously before grabbing a strand of Fred's red hair curiously.

"Jason, these are your uncles, Fred and George."

"You can just call us Fredge, we don't mind," George said to Jason and then turned to Ginny, "Gin, we could take care of our nephew for a little while, if you feel like saying hello to everyone."

"Thanks, George, that's nice of you." She handed him the little boy and walked towards the table where everyone had watched the incident.

She was soon surrounded by family and friends talking to her animatedly, and soon her feeling of discomfort had vanished. But when she looked towards the furthest end of the table, she met a couple of grey, icy eyes, gazing at her enigmatically, like she was used to them doing. Immediately she felt her insecurity return and her eyes turned to where Jason was sitting with Harry.

When she turned back to face Sirius' gaze again he had gotten to his feet and was crossing the room. He halted in front of Harry and Jason and bent down. Ginny watched the three of them curiously. Jason got off Harry's lap and tottered towards Sirius who was holding out a hand for the little boy to grasp. As he did so, Ginny saw Sirius' face light up for a brief moment and a warm feeling filled her chest.

Sirius looked up with a slight frown and when he noticed that Ginny's eyes rested upon him he hesitated and pulled his hand back. Jason who had tried to grasp Sirius' hand but now didn't find anything to take hold on, started wobbling uncontrollably. He let out a frightened scream and his eyes searched the room for Ginny. She had always saved him from every danger.

Right before falling onto the hard floor, Sirius caught Jason and pulled him into his arms. The boy started crying heartbreakingly, but Sirius instantly tried to comfort Jason with gentle words, rocking him back and forth in his arms. Ginny smiled slightly when noticing that the little boy stopped crying and seemed to be calming down.

She sat down on a chair and watched her little boy in the arms of his father, who obviously had no problems with holding Jason the right way, because the boy didn't object or try to free himself from Sirius' grasp. When Ginny felt a hand on her shoulder she looked up and saw Harry smiling at her.

"He knows, right?"

"Isn't that quite obvious? I mean, the way he holds him right now…" She looked over yet again to the two persons whispering things in each other's ears, which were meant to be heard by no one but themselves "I'm just wondering if I really did the right thing, Harry. I really don't know."

"Although I don't know what your intentions were, I'm sure you had a good reason for doing what you did. I trust your instinct, Gin. You'll just have to do that too."

He squeezed her shoulder and then went over to help Molly set the table. She looked over yet again to where Jason and Sirius had been just a few seconds ago but found the place to be empty. She searched the room for them, but couldn't find them anywhere. Ginny arose to look if they had gone outside, but suddenly found herself looking into Sirius' eyes.

"I think this is yours," he said with a slight smile playing around his lips, and handed her Jason.

"Yes, thanks, Sirius," she answered, her cheeks turning red.

Sirius frowned and for a moment he looked as if he was going to pull back again but instead he said, "You want to come out to the garden and take a walk? We… have quite a lot to talk about."

Ginny was surprised by the question; she had expected Sirius to be mad at her, to greet her with icy silence, but this caught her off-guard. Several emotions flooded her heart, mostly one she had tried to suppress for so long**…** too long.

"Alright, I'm just going to ask Harry to take care of Jason for a while, and then I'll come out. You just go ahead." Sirius nodded and went out through the door to the garden. After handing Harry her little son, Ginny followed Sirius out to the garden.

He was sitting on a wooden bench waiting for her, and as she sat down he immediately opened his mouth, "I want to take care of you, Ginny. I want to help you and Jason in every possible way, but you're backing away and I don't know what to do"

"W-What?" stuttered Ginny, and looked at Sirius with a baffled expression "What are you talking about, Sirius? You d-" Sirius cut her off with an impatient movement.

"Let me finish. I know I haven't been there for you and Jason, and I know I have to make it up to you, if you'd just let me."

"I've never asked for your help, Sirius," Ginny stated.

"I know That's the problem. You're shutting me out, and you have no right whatsoever to do so. I want to take care of Jason and be the father he deserves to have, but if you won't let me, I can promise you, I'll find other ways to get what I want." Sirius looked at her, a strand of black hair hanging down in front of his left eye.

Unaware of what she did, Ginny lifted her hand and put the strand behind Sirius' ear. Noticing what she had just done, Ginny flushed and quickly pulled her hand back, but to no effect since Sirius' eyes already twinkled impishly.

"You need me, Ginevra; you just haven't realized it yet." With that he bent forward and gently touched her lips with his own.


	10. Giving In

Ginny quickly shook her head and pushed Sirius away. He looked at her, startled at first, but then with a calm on his face she had never seen before.

"Sirius, I appreciate your concern, but I have been able to take care of myself and Jason just fine up till now, and I don't think there will be any problems." Ginny saw a shadow of impatience in Sirius' eyes, but chose to ignore it.

"So, if you don't have any further arguments I'll have to-"

"I love you, Ginevra."

"-go and see if Jason is alright. I mean, Harry's great and all, but he looked a bit frightened-"

"Gin, stop talking!" Sirius gently put a hand over Ginny's mouth and the stream of words abruptly stopped. "I said that I love you. I need you with me. I want to be with you, be with Jason. I want us to be a family."

Ginny swallowed down the lump in her throat and tried to suppress the tears welling up in her eyes. She had desperately wanted him to say those words. For the last two years she had waited for them. And now, they were nothing but… words.

"I didn't think you were that foul, Sirius. You don't back away from anything, do you?" she said with contempt in her voice.

"No, Ginevra, listen to me, I-"

"No, you listen," she cut him off, "I don't need your empty words or promises. It's my choice to live the way I do, and I'm perfectly okay with it." She took a deep breath and then continued, "I loved you. I loved you so much that I left, because I just couldn't bear seeing you acting so coolly towards me. I didn't want Jason to grow up with a father who loathed his own son's mother."

Ginny could no longer hold back the tears streaming down her cheeks as she shouted out all the things she had carried around with her for so long. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and then looked at Sirius who quietly had listened to her. "I just want to know why, Sirius. Please, at least tell me that."

"Because I was scared. Scared of what everyone would think," Sirius said and his eyes gazed into the distance, "Scared of what you would do when you finally realized what a mistake you had made."

"Why would I-"

"I'm a nobody, Ginny. I don't have anything to offer you. Do you think your parents would've let you be together with someone like me?" he paused quickly, but just to catch his breath, "Not even I would've let you. That's why I acted the way I did. To hurt you, so that I wouldn't be hurt myself. Well, the plan failed miserably."

Ginny looked at him in disbelief and shook her head in objection. "You're not a nobody, Sirius."

"Yes, I am. But that doesn't matter now. I have a reason to be with you now, a responsibility that makes it impossible for anyone to separate us ever again. And I'm not going to let this chance slip away, Ginny."

Ginny recalled why she had left him, recognizing it was for the reason he had just stated would bind them together forever. But he sounded genuinely pleased to be forced to a life with her, and Ginny couldn't help but wonder if she had been wrong all along.

"Do you really understand what you're saying, Sirius. This is no game. I won't let you hurt me again. If you do-"

"Ginevra, I promise you, that from this moment on I will never deliberately hurt you nor do anything that makes you doubt my feelings for you." Sirius looked into her eyes, his own glowing with suppressed passion, and Ginny couldn't hold it back any longer.

She threw herself into his arms, her lips covering his in a desperate gesture. She needed him. Yet again the tears wet her cheeks, but she was happy. Happier than she had been for the last two years.

"I love you, Sirius," she whispered tenderly into his ear, and he tightened his grip around her. They were lost in their own little world, so they didn't hear the person approaching.

As Hermione cleared her throat they flew apart, guilty expressions on both of their faces. "I'm sorry to interrupt you two," she said with a broad smile on her face," I just thought you'd like to know that were leaving for the church now."

Ginny laughed and stood up to give Hermione a hug. "Did you just arrive, 'Mione?" she asked, her arms still slung around her best friend, "How's your little girl? Oh, and what's her name. I'm a terrible godmother; I don't even know her name." Ginny threw her arms into the air, but Hermione just smiled.

"You've had enough problems to deal with on your own, Ginny. No one blames you." Hermione got down to pick the little girl up that had been staring at them from within the pram. "I'd like to introduce you to Isabel Weasley."

"Pleased to meet you, Isabel. I'm Ginny," Ginny said and bent down to give the little girl a kiss on the forehead.

"We'd better hurry up then," said Sirius from behind and slung an arm around Ginny, and together they walked back to the house.

Before walking in through the door, Sirius bent down to Ginny and whispered: "So, are you satisfied withthis happy ending, Gin?"

She smiled and placed a kiss on his earlobe, "No, I'm satisfied with our wonderful beginning."

* * *

**A/N:** Well, this is it then. I want to thank everyone for the great reviews and the criticism. I really appreciate the time you've all put aside to read this story. I'd also like to thank my BETA Tiffany Ramey, who unfortunately hasn't been able to correct this last chapter, so there might be more mistakes than usual. I will however edit those errors in time, so don't worry. Hope you all enjoyed reading this story!

Lots of love, Franzi


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